Vikings debut new offense in win over Saints

Dobbs, Rudolph lead Steelers past Bucs

NEW ORLEANS, Aug 10, (AP): Kirk Cousins enjoyed his first true taste of Minnesota’s new offense – both from under center and watching from the sideline.

Cousins was flawless in his lone series in Minnesota’s new offensive scheme, backup Sean Mannion delivered a scoring pass under a heavy rush, and the Vikings defeated New Orleans 34-25 in the preseason opener for both clubs Friday night.

The game marked the Vikings’ first test of their new offense directed by coordinator Kevin Stefanski and influenced by adviser Gary Kubiak.

During the one series in which the first-team offense played, Cousins drove the Vikings 81 yards for a touchdown in eight plays, completing all four passes for 65 yards. Cousins connected on a pair of short passes before finding Adam Thielen for 35 yards down the right side, setting up a 1-yard scoring pass to third-round draft choice Alexander Mattison.

Mannion was 7 of 13 for 102 yards, highlighted by his 18-yard touchdown pass to rookie Olabisi Johnson as Saints defensive end Trey Hendrickson bolted into the backfield and hit the backup QB. Johnson, a seventh-round draft pick and a candidate for Minnesota’s No. 3 receiver, made the catch while leaping and reaching back over the shoulders of veteran defensive back Patrick Robinson to bring in the ball.

Third-string Vikings QB Kyle Sloter also threw for a touchdown, finding Khari Blasingame from 2 yards out.

With Saints record-setting QB Drew Brees getting the night off, ex-Viking Teddy Bridgewater started. He played throughout the first half, completing 14 of 19 passes for 134 yards and one

Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Joshua Dobbs throws a pass during the fist half of the team’s NFL preseason football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in

Pittsburgh on Aug 9. (AP)

touchdown on an 18-yard pass to tight end Dan Arnold.

But Arnold essentially gave that score right back early in the second half when he was unable to secure a pass from Taysom Hill and the ball squirted straight into the arms of defensive back Nate Meadors, who easily returned his interception 30 yards for a touchdown.

Hill played throughout the second half, going 8 of 14 for 80 yards and one touchdown on Lil’Jordan Humphrey’s 33-yard, tackle-breaking catch and run.

Vikings second-year running back Mike Boone broke loose for a 64-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter that put Minnesota up 34-25.

Former LSU track athlete and New Orleans native Cyril Grayson Jr had a pair of crowd-pleasing moments with his 32-yard catch down the right side from Bridgewater and his 40-yard kickoff return.

Each team made a coach’s challenge allowed by new rules pertaining to pass interference.

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer asked officials to review whether the Saints had committed offensive pass interference after a first-down play on which no flag was thrown. The challenge was rejected.

Saints coach Sean Payton unsuccessfully challenged a defensive pass interference penalty that set up Blasingame’s short TD.

Minnesota rookie tight end Irv Smith Jr, a second-rounder out of Alabama, was making his NFL preseason debut on his 21st birthday in his hometown, where his father, Irv Smith Sr, once played tight end for the Saints. He was targeted seven times and finished with three catches for 21 yards.

Smith said he met family and close friends for dinner at the Palace Cafe, a popular downtown Creole eatery, after the team landed Thursday. While Smith couldn’t resist the restaurant’s renowned white chocolate bread pudding with whiskey sauce, he said he also saved room for the birthday cake his mother baked.

After the game, he swapped jerseys with Saints interior lineman Will Clapp, a former high school teammate who played at Crimson Tide rival LSU.

The top draft choice for each team last spring was a center.

Minnesota’s Garrett Bradbury, drafted 18th overall, played on the opening drive.

The Saints, who didn’t have a firstround pick, selected Erik McCoy 48th overall. He played the first several series of the game.

Tennessee Titans’ Kalif Raymond (front right), is knocked out of bounds by Philadelphia Eagles’ Jeremiah McKinnon during the first half of a preseason

NFL football game on Aug 8 in Philadelphia. (AP)

In Pittsburgh, the battle is on for the backup quarterback spot in Pittsburgh.

Josh Dobbs and Mason Rudolph led the offense on four scoring drives as the Steelers defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30-28 on Friday night in the preseason opener for both teams.

Two-time Super Bowl winner Ben Roethlisberger gave way to recent draft picks Dobbs and Rudolph to battle for the backup quarterback job.

“It was good to get out there, make plays and move the ball efficiently,” Dobbs said.

In Tampa, the Buccaneers want to see if Jameis Winston is the long-term answer at quarterback this season. His short sting Friday was a positive step.

Winston led the Bucs’ first-team offense to a touchdown in his only offensive series against a Steelers defense that featured few regulars.

“We executed pretty well and really established the run game,” Winston said. “When you run the football well, you get touchdowns on the first drive.”

Dobbs started and played two series, going 5 of 8 for 85 yards and throwing an interception that was nullified because of offsetting penalties. Dobbs, a fourth-round draft pick in 2017, also had two third-down scrambles for 44 yards, including a 36-yarder that set up a 33-yard field goal by Chris Boswell.

Rudolph entered on the third series and played into the third quarter. He finished 5 of 8 for 91 yards and two touchdowns.

Rudolph, the Steelers’ third-round pick in 2018, completed all three attempts during his first series, including an 8-yard touchdown to James Washington, his college teammate at Oklahoma State. In the third quarter, a 59yard catch-and-run by Johnny Holton set up a 3-yard score to Zach Gentry, the Steelers’ fifth-round pick.

Bruce Arians coached his first game for the Buccaneers, and he did it where he was an assistant coach from 200411, winning two Super Bowls. Arians, back on the sideline after a year of retirement, coached in Arizona for five seasons and, while in Pittsburgh, helped develop Roethlisberger into one of the league’s top quarterbacks.

The Bucs hope he can do the same with Winston, the No. 1 overall pick in 2015 who led the league’s top-ranked passing offense in 2018, but has been spotty.

Winston finished 5 of 6 for 40 yards with a 9-yard touchdown pass to Chris Godwin. Winston’s lone incompletion was a first-down deep shot from midfield; the Bucs faced third down once during the 12-play, 81-yard drive.

“It was a perfect drive,” Arians said. “We ran the ball well, and that sets up a lot of stuff for us. I thought Jameis took what was there.”

Winston, close to the franchise passing record, has thrown for 14,628 yards. But he’s won only 21 of 56 career starts and the Bucs have gone 5-11 in consecutive seasons. Entering the final year of his rookie contract, he’s thrown for a franchise-record 88 touchdowns in four seasons, but he also has 58 interceptions in those 56 games.

Steelers first-round pick linebacker Devin Bush finished with 10 tackles, including seven solo in one half. He had six tackles in the first quarter alone, with four solo. Bush, the No. 10 overall pick from Michigan, nearly had an interception and was part of a fourthand-1 stop in the second quarter.

Tampa Bay running backs Peyton Barber and Ronald Jones combined for 36 yards on just seven carries against the Steelers. The Bucs had one of the worst rushing offenses in the league last season. Barber led the team with 871 yards and five touchdowns in 16 games. Jones, the Bucs’ second-round pick in 2018, had just 22 yards on 28 carries in the preseason last year, and 44 yards and a score on 23 carries during the regular season, when he struggled with the playbook. He had 18 yards on four carries Friday.